Bonding
by Wind's Gale
Summary: Kagome decides it's time for Inuyasha and Sesshomaru to start bonding. Poor Inuyasha. Takes place after The Final Act and contains spoilers. Rated T for language.


Kagome decides that Inuyasha and Sesshomaru should bond more. Poor Inuyasha. Contains spoilers from the Final Act and some potty mouth language. Check out version 2 if you're interested.

The summer breeze brushed past the Taiyoukai. He welcomed the cool breeze against his smooth skin. The scent of roses and lavender filled his sharp nostrils. It was a delightful smell. The smell of summer. He was sitting, leaning against the trunk of a tree just outside the small village in which Kagome, Inuyasha, and everyone else lived, including Rin. He could see the fields of which they grew most of their medicinal herbs. His amber eyes were closed as he relaxed and let his body become one with nature in a way. The very distant laughter and chatter of the villagers filled his sensitive ears. It was almost...soothing in a weird way although he wouldn't admit it, not even to himself.

His relaxation was ruined however when he sensed the presence of a certain half-demon. Sesshomaru's amber eyes opened, darting over to Inuyasha who was staring at him hard while sitting in his typical dog-like manner. He saw his younger brother's ears twitch a few times. Sesshomaru closed his eyes once again and spoke in a cool, low voice that he tried to make sound like he was irritated but it didn't come out as such. He just sounded calm as usual.

"What, _half-breed?" _

Inuyasha frowned then gave Sesshomaru another hard look.

"Kagome kicked me out."

"So?"

"She said we needed to...'bond' more."

Sesshomaru said nothing. A gentle breeze blew in the wind, swaying the two brothers' hair. After a minute of silence, Inuyasha spoke up again.

"You're a bastard."

"I believe you are the bastard here, Inuyasha." Sesshomaru retorted.

"Why you.."

In the distant he could hear Kagome's voice from the herb field which made him shiver in fear.

"I DON'T HEAR BONDING OVER THERE." Inuyasha grumbled to himself. _'Oh man. Don't tell me she has super-hearing too.'_

"Your wench is annoying. I suggest you keep her in line."

"She is _not_ a wench...but she is annoying sometimes." Inuyasha said as face dropped into a peeved facial expression. "I can't believe she has me stuck here, telling me to bond with the bastard who always tried to kill me."

"You should take that up with your wench, not me. Leave me be."

"No way, if I have to suffer because of Kagome, so are you. Until I figure out what the hell "bonding" means." Inuyasha dropped on his butt so he could sit with his legs crossed and arms folded into the sleeves of his kosode-like shirt. He was giving a hard stare at Sesshomaru again. This time Sesshomaru opened his eyes, staring right back at the younger male but with an expressionless face.

"You are stubborn. And annoying."

"It's not my fault I'm here, alright? This is all Kagome's idea."

"A shame you're so afraid of your own woman."

"I'm not afraid of her!"

Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed. "You're lying."

"I..I am not!" A very faint blush appeared on Inuyasha's face. "She's just..uh.."

"If you controlled your anger and spoke with a little more honor she might just respect you enough to listen."

"Feh. I don't have an anger problem."

Sesshomaru cocked an eyebrow.

Inuyasha stared out towards the village. "Does Kagome really not respect me? Perhaps I am a little harsh..." He said mostly to himself. His gaze shifted back to Sesshomaru who had his eyes closed again. It felt weird that they were conversing and not fighting as usual. Ever since Naraku had been defeated, they didn't seem to hate each other as much as they did before or as much as they would like to.

"Talk to your woman and leave me be." He heard Inuyasha growl a little. The faint smell of the priestess crossed both their noses and grew stronger. Sesshomaru heard Inuyasha stand up as footsteps approached.

"Hello Inuyasha, Sesshomaru." Kagome said in her usual cheerful voice. She was dressed her in typical priestess garb and had a basket of herbs and other plants slid into her left arm.

"Kagome, I have something to say to you." He said a bit agitated.

She frowned. "Inuyasha, I don't feel like arguing."

"I don't want to spend time with the bastard." Inuyasha paused then spoke in a calmer voice. "I mean..I'm just not interested." _'If you controlled your anger and spoke with a little more honor..' _"I, erm, appreciate the gesture and concern but his company is not something I need nor want and I hope you can..er..respect that. I guess." The half-breed scratched the back of his head as he looked at his wife.

Kagome blinked a couple of times. It made Inuyasha nervous the way she was looking at him. He couldn't tell if she was angry or not. Much to his surprise, she smiled.

"Alright Inuyasha. I'll go get started on lunch. See you at home." She said as she turned, waving to him before starting off to the village.

Inuyasha stood there, dumbfounded. _'It worked? She..didn't get angry. She actually listened.' _He turned around towards his half-brother, who still had his eyes closed, relaxing against the trunk of the tree.

"Hey, how the hell did know that?" Inuyasha inquired.

"Know what?"

"That..." Inuyasha turned from him. "Nevermind."

"You told him _what?_"

Sango and Miroku said in unison. They were outside their little hut, hanging clothes on the line. Their son was sleeping on Sango's back in his little carrier. Their twins were drawing in the dirt with sticks, occasionally smacking each other's sticks and giggling. Kagome was standing near the baskets full of clothes which she would dip into and hand the clothes off to Sango and Miroku.

"Well, I figured since they stopped fighting, perhaps there was a chance for them to finally bond as brothers."

"I don't think that was such a good idea..Just because they stopped fighting doesn't mean they won't start again if the other says the wrong thing." Miroku said.

"I agree with Miroku on this one. You could start something that'll never stop until one of them is dead."

"Well I guess I never thought about that..but you know, I think it did some good."

"And why do you say that Kagome?"

"Well Sango, when I went to check on Inuyasha and Sesshomaru, Inuyasha was...gentler. Calmer in a way. When he spoke to me, he spoke with a little more...respect."

"You have to admit, Inuyasha's been maturing evermore since Naraku was defeated and you disappeared in the well. He always seems to be able to surprise us." Miroku commented.

"That's true but..I swear I thought I saw the weirdest thing." Kagome handed a kimono to Sango, who clipped it to the clothes line. "When Inuyasha spoke to me, I swear I saw the faintest smirk on Sesshomaru. Like he was..._proud_ in a way."


End file.
